You never know what you'll see at the range

[Larry Gibson]

And if you watch tank cannons at night.....

Me, back in the mid '70s shooting main gun on my M60......

[dtknowles]

I was scouting a new place to shoot and found this in a bag, in a Ruger Single Six box on the ground.



Tim

[WestDivide]

OK, I'll chime in here....

My gun club opens to the public each fall for Sept and Oct. for hunter sight-in. As mentioned early in the thread, it's a good fund raiser. Members staff the big bore range as range officers. So, we have several RO's supervising shooters. There's a training class for members to be range officers so some consistency is achieved. In general, it's a positive endeavor as several of us enjoy helping shooters.

We instituted an ammo check at sign-in to prevent wrong ammo. We do catch several mismatches come through each year. People are pretty tolerant and see the issue, especially upon showing the pics of the Win 670 with the flowered barrel. I forget the ammunition involved. Several years ago, prior to the mandated ammo check, I did have one young man bring a brand-new rifle with no sights or scope. Upon querying, he 'just wanted to shoot it a couple times'. So, I watched him, and when the second case hit the floor, I thought it looked funny. 300 Win makes an interesting fireformed case in a 300 WHBY chamber. He was a little perturbed when I wouldn't let him shoot it anymore. He swore up and down the salesclerk had given him "300 Mag" ammo.

Probably the most noted occurrences are new scopes. I can safely say 90 % of scopes mounted (and "bore-sighted") by 'gun stores', big box or otherwise, will not be on an 18" target at 100 yds and often at 50 yds. Consequently, we've gotten pretty good at physically bore-sighting rifles, particularly bolt guns.

I've seen few 'know-it-alls', most people are pretty appreciative of help, and we don't intrude if they appear competent. We do see some mechanical and optic failures through the season. It's sad to see someone go home with a malfunctioning gun. We don't physically work on customer's guns but will provide tools and advice on a problem.

-West out

[15meter]

Probably the most noted occurrences are new scopes. I can safely say 90 % of scopes mounted (and "bore-sighted") by 'gun stores', big box or otherwise, will not be on an 18" target at 100 yds and often at 50 yds. Consequently, we've gotten pretty good at physically bore-sighting rifles, particularly bolt guns.

-West out

Several years ago at my club's public deer rifle site-in we had a dude show and start complaining that he had missed four deer in four seasons and was just fed up because he couldn't get his shotgun sited-in. No matter what he did using the scope adjustments, he couldn't get it to hit anywhere near where it was supposed to.

He pulled a scoped shotgun out of the case and set it on the bench. Before he was allowed to shoot his first round, his scope was loosened and rotated 90 degrees. Three shots later he was hitting bull's.

Amazing what having up/down and left/right positioned correctly will do for point of aim adjustments.

He literally started jumping up and down pumping his fists in the air shouting "I'm going to get a deer! I'm going to get a deer!"

It was spookily like Flounder in Animal House. He even looked like Flounder.

[dondiego]

Hopefully you rotated it 180 degrees but I have served as a Range Officer at several of those Deer Season Sight In's and I have seen a lot of things myself. .270 ammo shot in 30-06 rifles and one guy who was hitting the ground 50 feet in front of the target and couldn't understand why his groups were so erratic. He wouldn't believe me when I told him he was hitting dirt first and his bullet was jumping up to the target. I was impressed at actually how well he was doing!

[15meter]

Don, it was just loosen and rotate so the elevation and the windage turrets were in the right place.

He was adjusting exactly as the turrets said, problem was windage was now elevation and elevation moved windage.

He wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.

But he did give us a few laughs.

Back in the day we also had 303 British show up to be shot in a Savage 99 in 303 Savage and vice versa.

A number of scope eyes, even after repeated warnings to not creep up on the scope.

Had several first time shooters almost drop their rifles from the recoil because they had to have the biggest whomper-stomper caliber they could find. 300 Weatherby Mag for a Michigan white-tail kind of silliness.

[steve urquell]

Don, it was just loosen and rotate so the elevation and the windage turrets were in the right place.

He was adjusting exactly as the turrets said, problem was windage was now elevation and elevation moved windage.

He wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.

But he did give us a few laughs.

Back in the day we also had 303 British show up to be shot in a Savage 99 in 303 Savage and vice versa.

A number of scope eyes, even after repeated warnings to not creep up on the scope.

Had several first time shooters almost drop their rifles from the recoil because they had to have the biggest whomper-stomper caliber they could find. 300 Weatherby Mag for a Michigan white-tail kind of silliness.

I worked with a guy who's brother gave him a .300 Weatherby Mag. He missed several deer with it. One at point blank range. Got rid of it. Later he missed one at 7yds with his muzzleloader. I took it home to check it out and put 5 shots in 2" at 35 yards to the sights.

Some folks just don't need to be hunting.

[15meter]

I worked with a guy who's brother gave him a .300 Weatherby Mag. He missed several deer with it. One at point blank range. Got rid of it. Later he missed one at 7yds with his muzzleloader. I took it home to check it out and put 5 shots in 2" at 35 yards to the sights.

Some folks just don't need to be hunting.

I suspect some of the clean misses are intentional, "if I miss, I don't have to gut it," then blame it on the gun.

Or they just shouldn't be allowed out without a keeper.

[CastingFool]

I was shooting on an outdoor range next to a guy who was shooting a single shot .69 cal. ml pistol. The target frame was weather hardened oak. A split second after he fired, I was hit in the shin by his lead round ball! MAN! that stung! The lead ball bounced back off the wood frame and hit with enough velocity to raise a large bruise on my leg. Large diameter bullets at lower velocities seem to bounce back with annoying frequency!

I don't remember all the details, but I watched a video where a guy shot a handgun at a target on what looked like a solid wood backstop. The ball bounced off and struck the shooter on the forehead and knocked him out cold!

[dondiego]

Don, it was just loosen and rotate so the elevation and the windage turrets were in the right place.

He was adjusting exactly as the turrets said, problem was windage was now elevation and elevation moved windage.

He wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.

But he did give us a few laughs.

Back in the day we also had 303 British show up to be shot in a Savage 99 in 303 Savage and vice versa.

A number of scope eyes, even after repeated warnings to not creep up on the scope.

Had several first time shooters almost drop their rifles from the recoil because they had to have the biggest whomper-stomper caliber they could find. 300 Weatherby Mag for a Michigan white-tail kind of silliness.

HA! I understand now. I thought that he had it on backwards which I have seen as well.

[cpaspr]

Our range puts on a monthly outdoor bowling pin shoot from May to October. Pins are at 15 yards. We'll occasionally find ricocheted rounds back on the concrete firing line. I once picked up a bullet halfway back from the pins and recognized it as one of the bullets from my .380 that I had just fired. Light load of Bullseye behind a 90gr slug. It still had the lube in the lube groove, and appeared undeformed. On another occasion, one of our shooters was hit low in the leg by a .45 ACP SWC that bounced off a bowling pin at about a 45 degree angle. Didn't hurt him, but he definitely felt it when it hit the loose fabric of his jeans.

[charlie b]

I had an inline muzzle loader that I rotated the scope. When in the correct position the windage knob was in the 'blast zone' of the percussion cap. Once rotated, no more issue. But, I did have to think twice before I made an adjustment. Took several deer and an elk with it.

[Texas by God]

“I was Up Right before I was Left Down”
That’s how I remember how to adjust scopes that by necessity had to be mounted 90 degrees off….


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[elmacgyver0]

“I was Up Right before I was Left Down”
That’s how I remember how to adjust scopes that by necessity had to be mounted 90 degrees off….


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

That reminds me of the old resistor color code numonic.

[pete501]

Years ago I was RO at a public range, while heading home, I notice a truck parked at a range that was closed and under construction. I stopped to let them know that the range was closed to shooting. Much to my surprise, there was a couple getting it on in the back of the truck. I was more embarrassed than they were.

[waksupi]

Years ago I was RO at a public range, while heading home, I notice a truck parked at a range that was closed and under construction. I stopped to let them know that the range was closed to shooting. Much to my surprise, there was a couple getting it on in the back of the truck. I was more embarrassed than they were.

Some of the worst long term effects linger for years after a stray shot in that situation.

[Rapier]

I was a range master and match director on a military base R&G Club's ranges for 45 years. No counting the dumb things I have seen from the young GIs. As my old First Sargent said on several occasions, "What can you expect, when you give an 18 year old a 1 million dollar tank to drive around?" If you have a teenage son, you get the picture.

Anyway, it was my habit to go by the sub shop, buy a sandwich and drink then drop by the Club's 300 meter rifle range, to eat my lunch in peace and quiet. One day, I was eating peacefully and heard a racket, got up and walked around, nothing. then heard it again, so walked out on the range and looked up, there was a beautiful big, 35 pound bobcat chasing a fox squirrel through the tree tops, near 300 feet above the ground. Way up in the virgin yellow pine canopy, above the covered firing line. Never knew a bobcat would chase squirrels through the tree tops, up into the small limbs. but there he was, it was quite a sight. Must have been a mighty hungry cat.

[405grain]

Reading through these posts reminds me of the time I was shooting on the 50 yard range at a public range. I was sighting in some cast rifle loads, and the only other shooter on that range at the time was a younger guy about four spaces over. He had a scoped pump action 30-06 (I assume a Remington, but it was a couple of years ago so not sure). He was trying to sight in by blasting away and pumping the slide as quickly as he could. The "group" that he was shooting was a swath that was 6" high and a foot and a half long (all over a foot to the right of the bullseye). He had already gone through 5 boxes of Remington factory ammo, and was working his way through the 6th box. (In after thought, he most likely inherited the ammo too.) After a while he sat there with a bewildered look on his face, and when I looked over at him he signaled for me to come over and give him some help.

When I walked over to his bench he asked me how to "bend his scope mount". He related to me that he had inherited this rifle from his Grandfather, and he was planning on going on his first ever deer hunt next week, but no matter what he did he couldn't get the rifle sighted in. I told him that it usually only takes three or more rounds to get on target (and he'd already shot over 100), and that the first thing to do was take one aimed shot at the bullseye, then see how much adjustment was needed to move the point of impact over for the correction. The words hadn't left my mouth for a second before this guy quickly turned toward the target and discharged the rifle. He then turned and looked back at me as if to say "Ok, now what's next?" This instantly confirmed what I had already expected - this guy is a moron.

Thankfully I was still wearing a set of electronic earmuffs when he pulled this stunt. I took a long breath and resisted the urge to just walk away, because this guy was stupid, but not arrogant. His shot had landed somewhere in the "pattern" that he'd been spraying onto the target, but there's no telling where. Because this pattern was generally centered high and off to the right I suggested that he start by adjusting the windage on his scope to move the point of impact to the left. To my amazement the covers on his scope adjustment knobs were still on, and he began vigorously rotating both of the adjustment covers back and forth without actually accomplishing anything. Then, without hesitation, or even saying a word, he immediately took another shot. After the shot his head literally sprung around to look at me with the expression of "Ok, now what?" on his face. As calmly as I could I said "I think you need to take that to a gunsmith", and I went over, gathered my stuff, and went to the 100 yard range to finish my shooting, letting this guy have the 50 yard range to himself.

[charlie b]

Sometimes, if you have the time and inclination, you can teach someone like that, but, not often. Have to sit down and go over the basics with them and it takes a while. I've had only two of those in many years on ranges. Many folks are just not patient enough to learn. They want to point and shoot like in the movies.